


Rock The Ship

by joufancyhuh



Series: Bad Puns & Finger Guns [8]
Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Birthday Fluff, F/M, Family, Fluff, Slightly spoilery for memory questline
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-19
Updated: 2017-11-19
Packaged: 2019-02-04 03:51:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12762555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joufancyhuh/pseuds/joufancyhuh
Summary: The Ryders celebrate their birthday, but one of them forgot to invite Reyes. That doesn't stop him from showing up, though.





	Rock The Ship

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally supposed to be my holiday fic for the Month of Fanfiction challenge, but this vexed me for months. Thank you to [AlyssAlenko](http://archiveofourown.org/users/alyssalenko) and ['Skarpetkamroku](http://archiveofourown.org/users/skarpetkamroku) for betaing. Y'all are blessings.
> 
> I was trying to post this by my birthday, but I was off by a week. Close enough, right?

The drink in Elspeth Ryder’s hand shook as she attempted to steady herself amongst the flow of the crowd. _A few people_ , she once relayed to her brother, an exact week before the cursed event; a few people, and she wanted her crew there. How did he even _know_ these people? He only woke up from his coma less than a year ago.

The salarian DJ, and the encompassing din of people trying to talk over the music, wasn’t what she’d had in mind when she said she wanted a party. This, the random turian shoved into her side, the humidity caused by sweat...this was exactly why she usually said no to celebrations. She could like parties, sure, but small ones, living room settings with a small cooler and some light dance music.

Her brother was DEAD when she saw him. It proved difficult picking anyone out in the crowd unless they stood on the bar or happened to be a krogan, especially for someone of her height. Her heels gave her a slight bump in that department, but there existed only so much that they could do for her.

Speaking of, she spotted a crest that might belong to Drack off in a nearby corner. She shoved her way over to him, ignoring the angry glares as she stepped on feet and collided into people’s backs, spilling one of the bartender’s latest creations down the front of her slinky baby blue dress. She glared, but the asari offered a more intimidating one of her own before swiveling back to her friends.

Elspeth recognized Drack laughing as she launched herself through the barrier of bodies into the moderate space the krogan cleared. “Nice party, kid,” he yelled.

She shook her head to show her distaste for it. “Have you seen my brother? I’m going to kill him.” Her voice strained as she attempted to get the words out at a volume her companion could pick up.

He tilted his head toward the opposite corner of the room. “He’s over there, talking to another human.” She groaned, loud enough that he must have heard it, because he placed a hand on her shoulder. “Want me to muscle out some room for you?”

She shook her head again. “I got this,” she mouthed, watching him nod as he received the message. He let go, and Elspeth began her shove to the other side. She decided to travel closer to the stage this time because at least the dancers moved. As she passed the DJ booth, the salarian waved and called into the mic, despite her arms crossing in the air in front of her.

“Let’s give a shout out to our favorite birthday twins!” Clapping surrounded her, and she ducked deeper into the dance floor to avoid unnecessary attention, face red but unseen in the dark of the Meridian bar.

Brother, _so dead_.

She spotted Brees’ smiling, happy face from a short distance away as he chatted with a dark-haired man. He clapped the man on the back before noticing her, his other arm shooting up to wave in the air. She scowled, wishing for nothing more than to wipe that silly grin off his mug. He leaned in to say something to the man, causing his guest to glance behind him. A small gasp parted her lips as their eyes met, his familiar whiskey browns crashing into hers, the usual smirk taking its place on his lips. _Reyes_.

The floor suddenly seemed distant, the crowd dulling in the background as her heart sped up in her chest. The only uninvited guest in Andromeda, and _of course_ he showed up anyway, with her brother no less.

Reyes, for his part, seemed nonplussed as he draped an arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head. “I think I recognize that dress,” he whispered in her ear before straightening his back and returning his attention to Brees. Her cheeks grew hot, remembering the last time she wore it and how quickly she didn’t once Reyes got ahold of her. Loud enough for both of them to hear, he yelled, “Your brother was just asking me why we haven’t met before now.”

“I should be able to ID the person my sister’s sleeping with,” Brees replied, causing Elspeth to hide her face in her hands. “Els gets this stupid little smile every time she comes back on board from Kadara. You must be giving her that good di—”

“STOP. Nope, no, Brees, we _talked_ about this.”

Brees laughed as he threw back the drink in his hand, half of it dribbling down the corner of his mouth. He wiped at it, not stopping as he shot back, “Reyes is a cool guy. I give the official Ryder stamp of approval.”

Reyes grinned, but Elspeth’s glare returned. “I don’t need your approval. Don’t you have somewhere to be right now? Anywhere but here?”

Brees rolled his eyes, but nodded. “Yeah, that stage and the ladies dancing on it are calling my name. Excuse me.” He winked at Reyes as he left, a groan coming from Elspeth as she hustled him along.

Someone ran into her, propelling her into Reyes’ chest. Arms encased her, holding her steady and tight against him. She peered up, caution in her gaze as she waited to see a reaction to either the person who shoved her or herself. It must have been obvious how uncomfortable she felt, because he grabbed her hand and started to lead her to the door, which stood thankfully nearby. She followed without hesitation, eager to break away from the mob.

She dreaded the conversation about to arise, but even just a moment of quiet appealed to her.

He led them all the way into the Captain’s Quarters, her door sealing shut as he let go of her hand. She waited, unsure of who should speak first. When he didn’t, instead electing to sit on the couch, she sighed and began. “I’m sorry. I should’ve invited you.”

“You did what you felt was necessary, I’m sure.” She fell into his lap as he pulled her into an embrace, his chin settling on the crown of her head.

She wrapped her arms around his chest before burying her head in the crook of his neck. “I don’t like parties, not like this. I thought I would save you the trouble of dealing with a cranky me.”

“You’re making excuses.” He kept his voice even, the way he did when dealing with unstable elements. Was this conversation that to him, another unstable element he needed to stay on his toes for? But truth existed in his statement, she couldn’t deny that.

“I wasn’t sure you would be allowed here, being an exile and all. They installed those new rules about visitors to Meridian after you were here the first time.”

“I still found a way in. It’s not like you to underestimate me.” His tone remained guarded, and she knew she couldn’t keep the truth from him any longer.

Still, she wanted to give him one more out as she tightened her hold on him. “You won’t like the truth.”

It sounded hypocritical coming from her mouth. How many times had the same words fallen from his lips, words that she fought against to get to his truth?

And he didn’t miss a beat, stepping in with, “Don’t assume how I’ll feel. I’m used to dealing with unpleasantness.” She said a small prayer, thanking him for not calling her out on it right away.

She wet her lips, not bothering to raise her head up. There wasn’t an easy way to go about this, and she wanted to skip the whole mess, why she’d lost his invitation in the first place. She steeled herself to his reaction as she said, “I...I didn’t want you meeting my brother.”

“Oh.”

The arms around her loosened and she could hear from the inflection in his voice that her words cut deep. This was why she left him out of it, played coy every time he brought up her birthday. Unfair that he brought no one with him to Andromeda, that this conversation remained one-sided. He didn’t get the opportunity to hide his family from her, so instead she looked like the bad partner. She attempted to soothe him, keep him from drifting or storming out. She raised her head until her blue eyes met his deep brown.

“It’s not you. He’s, what’s the word I’m looking for, annoying? Rude and vulgar and _so_ nosy and kind of a pig, but he’s my brother and I have to put up with him. You don’t have to. I wasn’t going to voluntarily subject you to that.”

Reyes laughed, his grip on her returning. “I like your brother. And he had some good questions for me before you got there. He cares about you a lot.”

Elspeth groaned, Reyes letting go with one hand to slide it down her face. “Let me guess, really personal, invasive questions? This is why I didn’t want you two meeting.”

“He wanted to know about my intentions with you, if I was seeing anyone else, if we were a couple.”

She leaned her head down on his shoulder, careful not to let him see her expression. He once said they were in a partnership, but she wanted something more romantic attached to how they described the relationship. She wanted the answers to the questions she stayed too afraid to ask, the ones her brother did in her place.

“He gave the typical _hurt my sister and die_ speech. Made me promise not to break your heart. Wanted to know how I felt about you.”

Elspeth didn’t realize how labored her breathing grew until she held it, not wanting to miss if he whispered the answer to those questions into the charged air of the cabin. Again, he held back, not responding, waiting on her. She licked her lips, struggling to find her voice.

“What did you tell him?”

After what felt like a long pause, Reyes replied, “That’s between he and I.” And then, “He also told me some embarrassing stories about you. I particularly liked the one about you in your underwear at a friend’s party.”

She groaned, burrowing her face further into his neck so he couldn’t see the scorch marks on her cheeks. “I can’t believe he told you about that.” Of course Brees told him about when she threw up on her clothes and had to go home in her underwear. In her defense, they were in high school and Brees wasn’t much better off than she was, but he most likely left that part out in typical Brees fashion.

His laughter filled the cabin in place of the tension. “That was nothing compared to the pictures. You in pigtails and braces, you were so radiant even back then.”

She swatted his chest, bringing a hand up to cover his mouth to stifle his chuckling. “It’s unfair that I don’t get to see a picture of you in return. I’m sure you weren’t always this suave and handsome either.”

He shrugged, a grin pulling beneath her palm. “Those pictures were left in the Milky Way. Sorry to disappoint, _mi alma_.”

Her smile faltered as her hand fell away. Reyes drew back one of his arms to catch her hand with his. “So, are we okay? I didn’t mean to hurt you, it really was just because I didn’t want you meeting Brees. Not because of us, but because I didn’t want to subject you to him.”

“I want to meet your family, Bumblebee. Don’t feel as though you should be ashamed of me.”

She stared into his eyes, sweet drops of whiskey that promised to love her, even at her worst, even with a brother whose mouth moved faster than his brain. She needed nothing other than this moment created for them, a present solely for her. She untangled herself from him and rose to her feet in a slow motion before grabbing his hand. “Come on.”

He obliged, though she could spot the reluctance in his stance. “Where are we going?”

“To meet my family.”

They ducked out of her quarters, past where the party sounded in loud booms and a cacophony of voices as they attempted to outshine one another. Reyes stayed on her heels, making a note of where she led them, down more hallways and through makeshift medbays, onto the tram. As she pressed for the official medbay and pod area, she turned toward Reyes, whose lips pressed together as he worked to piece together where they headed.

“I’ve had three, uh, partners meet my brother before. I figured Brees was a good gateway to my parents, but...he always managed to scare them off. I thought if you met him...I like what we have. I don’t want to rock the ship.”

Reyes nodded, his hand clutching hers tighter as he listened. “I like what we have, too. I’m not going anywhere, not without a fight.” He bent down, looping her into an embrace as his lips pressed against her own. The doors slid open before she could deepen it; she forced herself away and continued forward on her quest, dragging him along with her.

She stopped short when she spotted Dr. Carlyle, asleep in his chair beside one of the patient’s beds. The poor man had overworked himself again. She pressed a finger to her lips and tiptoed forward, through the medbay and around the corner. When she reached the pod selection panel, she let go of Reyes’ hand and keyed up Elizabeth Reilly’s pod to be brought forward. When it settled on the ground, she touched a hand to the side.

“Hi, Mom. It’s good to see you again.”

Reyes snapped to her side, his hand around her shoulder as she leaned into him. He brushed loose strands of her hair away from her face as she sought for what to say next. While she searched, Reyes laid a hand over hers on the pod, interlacing their fingers. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Ryder. I can see that your daughter gets all of her good looks from you.”

Elspeth swallowed the lump in her throat as she glanced over at him, only to find him already peering down at her, a soft smile on the corners of his lips. She found herself returning it before shifting her attention back to the pod. “You always pestered me about bringing someone home to meet you and Dad. I guess I just didn’t want to get your hopes up, I know you always wanted the best for me, wanted me to be happy. And Mom, I am. Reyes makes me so incredibly happy.”

She looked at him again, the dark look in his eye that meant he lost himself deep in thought, that he refuted her words in his head again. She squeezed his hand, not tearing her eyes away from him. “I want you to meet him. I know you’ll love him, because I do. I love him so much.”

“He’s alright I guess,” came a voice from behind. Brees stood nearby, an unopened bottle of champagne in one hand and three glasses in the other. He whistled when he spotted the inflaming of her cheeks as she whipped around, Reyes’ limbs falling to his side as he tried to keep himself away from the whiplash. “Nice to see the party started without me.”

“No one invited you here, Brees.” Elspeth crossed her arms, glaring at him over the short distance.

“She’s my mom too, Sis.” He sauntered over, setting his items on top of the pod. “Introducing Reyes to Mom? You _must_ like this one.” He picked the bottle of champagne back up and worked on unscrewing the top. Bubbles fizzed as it popped, flying somewhere on the other side of the pod. He poured some in each glass before handing them out.

Elspeth and Reyes muttered a small thanks as they each took one. Brees raised his glass high. “To another year. And to you two. I’m glad Els finally found someone who can stand her.”

“Haha, very funny,” she replied as she clinked her glass to theirs. Champagne buzzed on her tongue as she took a sip, fighting off the grimace as it slid down her throat. She hated the taste, but the ceremony was appreciated on occasion.

Brees moved to sit cross-legged on the ground, bringing the bottle with him. Reyes followed suit before pulling Elspeth into his lap, kissing the side of her neck. She leaned against him, arms overlapping his around her waist as their private party continued on throughout the rest of the evening.

In bed later that night, as Elspeth admired the tiny bumblebee ring Reyes gifted her once they returned to the cabin, she inclined her head toward his half-asleep face. “Maybe I want to rock the ship just a little,” she whispered, unsure if he would hear.

But a hand skidded down her back as a mumbled, “Hm?” sounded up from the pillows. She maneuvered herself so their heads laid parallel to one another. She cupped his cheek, thumb running over his lips as they began to part in a small smile. “Haven’t you worn me out enough, devil woman?”

“It’s still my birthday,” she whispered, drawing back her hand before leaning over for a kiss. His teeth nipped at her bottom lip as he rolled them over, pinning her to the mattress. She giggled before grabbing the sides of his face and pulling him back. “But that’s not what I wanted.”

“Is this what you want?” He began to kiss down the length of her body, starting with all the favorite places along her neck that she loved when he touched. But she tugged his hair, halting the process. Maker help her, her body felt hot for him all over again, ready to go yet another round with him. But sex wasn’t what she meant by rocking the ship, not this time.

“I want to rock the ship.”

He collapsed on top of her, laying soft kisses along her cheek as his head rested beside hers. “What do you mean by that, _mi alma_?” His voice came through as a whisper before his tongue traced the shell of her ear. She shivered beneath him, hands reaching up to knead the muscles in his back.

“I want...I want to know what you told my brother. Does this make you my boyfriend? Are we a couple?”

A finger pressed to her lips as he shushed her. He lifted his head, stroking her hair as he gazed down at her. “ _Mierda_ , you are beautiful.”

She huffed. “If you don’t want to answer, just say so.”

“I never said I wasn’t going to answer.” He continued to stroke her hair as he laid a kiss on her forehead. “You worry too much about everything. You ask these silly questions, even when you know the answers.”

“Then let me ask them anyway.” She hesitated before repeating, “What are you to me?”

“Yours."

“And what does that mean?”

“Whatever you would like it to.” He leaned back down near her ear. “ _Te amo, mi alma,”_ he whispered before kissing her ear and falling back onto his side of the bed. Her heart thudded in her chest, her Spanish enough that she recognized his words. He never said them out loud before, not since she called him on it months ago and he whispered it when he thought she slept. But here they lingered, voluntary and freely-given, no coercion necessary.

She curled under his arm, using his chest as a pillow once more. “I love you, too.” A grin formed on her face as she leaned into him, whispered, “Boyfriend.”

And despite the obvious effort to fight it, he smiled.

Elspeth couldn’t remember a better birthday.


End file.
